


in sickness and in health

by wyoheartsmusic



Category: SKAM (TV)
Genre: Emma's pov, Future Fic, M/M, What's new, but i just thought i point it out, emma is still going to school and isak is her teacher, emma is the age she's now, except emma's daydreaming, gosh that was hard to get into, i mean obviously, isak is gay, isak is thirty, nothing inappropriate happens, or well, she has an unhealthy fixation on isak, she's very annoying lol, teacher!isak, this is just an excuse to have isak gushing about even
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-14
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2019-02-02 01:10:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12716700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wyoheartsmusic/pseuds/wyoheartsmusic
Summary: Emma is crushing on her teacher until she finds out he's very much in love with his husband.





	in sickness and in health

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to Marta for the [prompt](https://www.instagram.com/p/BbaAOU1D-SD/)... this was fun to write when I finally got into it xD
> 
> This goes to all the lovelies at Skamfiction, especially Mack who helped me figure this out a little better. I love you all <3

If you asked Emma what the highlight of her school day is, she’d answer with, “Biology.” A dreamy, almost devilish smile on her face as if she knows something you don’t.

And well, not everyone is lucky to have Isak as their Biology teacher, which, in her opinion, is the best thing in the whole world. He has dreamy blonde curls and beautiful green eyes and whenever Emma has a question, he comes to her table, kneeling down by her side to be at eye level and explains it to her with the utmost care. His smile whenever he returns to the front of the classroom after having given her his explanation makes her feel warm and fuzzy.

She can’t stop giggling about him to her friends even though he’s thirty and her teacher and her friends keep reminding her that maybe she should give her affections to a guy that’s her age. But Emma does not listen to them, because in her head, there’s this hope that one day, she’ll have an epic romance with her Biology teacher.

So naturally, she’s practically bouncing as she walks into the classroom with Lea by her side, her smile huge and a new burgundy lipstick on her lips. She has a feeling today will be a good day. Today, Isak will look at her and realise that Emma is _it_ for him.

Except that when she enters the classroom, the teacher that is widely known as _Nipples_ is at the front and not the Dreamboat of a teacher named Isak Valtersen.

Emma’s eyes are wide and her pout exaggerated while Lea just rolls her eyes, walking past her to dump her bag on their table. Emma gnaws on her bottom lip before she walks up to the teacher’s desk — which plays a quite _vivid_ part in her dreams about herself and Isak most nights — and asks Nipples, “Uh, isn’t Isak here today?”

She raises her eyebrows at Emma and answers brusquely, “He asked for leave of absence. I’m afraid you’ll have to put up with me.”

Emma worries immediately. Of the little things she knows about her favourite teacher, one is that he’s very stubborn so a little cold does not keep him from coming to school. This has to be something more serious then. Something uncomfortable unfurls in Emma’s stomach.

As she sits down, she hears her classmates murmuring to each other, wondering what’s up with Isak. He’s _everyone’s_ favourite teacher with how passionate he can get about a boring subject like Biology and when he’s in a grumpy mood, he just puts on a random film for them to watch that’s vaguely on topic that he never asks them to take notes on while he is on his phone.

So yes, he’s everyone’s favourite teacher — and if not, he’s still better than fucking _Nipples_ — but he’s Emma’s eternal crush additionally to that.

As Nipples drawls on about something that can’t be more boring, Emma doodles little hearts with _I+E_ in them and scribbling _Emma Valtersen_ and, tentatively, _Isak Larzen_ next to it with an almost aggressive fervour.

 

By the end of the week, Emma feels like withering away from the lack of Isak she’s had this week.

Waking up in the mornings is harder and she almost wants to try to get her mother to let her stay home sick but she realises that there’s a possibility of Isak returning before the weekend so she drags herself to school.

Friday goes by without Emma seeing Isak.

She spends the whole weekend pouting in her room, imagining a different life where she’d stay over at Isak’s and nurse him back to health.

And then Monday comes around and Emma has never been happier about the beginning of the week. She’s certain the weekend was long enough for Isak to recover from whatever sickness.

After getting through the first half of the day, Emma entered the Biology classroom with anticipation thrumming in her veins. She almost squeals when no teacher is there yet because that could only mean one thing: Nipples is always annoyingly early while Isak just barely makes it on time.

The bell rings five minutes later and everyone is already seated, cheering when the door flies open and Isak enters the room, messenger bag flailing and curls the familiar mess on his head.

Emma sighs, grinning to herself.

The people around Emma greet their teacher with enthusiastic _You’re back_ s and _Finally, we missed you!_ s.

Isak laughs and it’s the best sound in the world to Emma. He pops the first button of his flannel open because to the other teachers he wants to keep up a put-together look but as soon as he enters the classroom and is around his students, he doesn’t care anymore.

“It’s great to have you back! We were worried!” Someone from the back row shouts and the rest nods in agreement.

Another person says, “I hope it wasn’t anything serious that kept you home!”

Isak ruffles through his bag before seemingly giving up and looking at them while scratching the back of his head. “Oh no, I’m fine. Thank you for your concern. It’s good to be back but I had to stay home for a bit because my husband wasn’t feeling well and I wanted to take care of him. Make him soup and card my fingers through his hair so he can relax enough to get some sleep… the fun stuff, you know.”

Everything goes cold in Emma. _Husband_?

**H**

**U**

**S**

**B**

**A**

**N**

**D**

The love of her life is married to another _man_ and doing all the things with his husband she wants to do with and for him. She grits her teeth, feeling tears spring to her eyes. Lea’s hand on her arm is barely any consolation.

As Emma slowly comes back to the reality of this situation, she notices how the room has gone eerily quiet.

Isak is looking at them with squinted eyes, trying to calculate what’s going through their heads.

Emma can barely look at him. She feels so betrayed.

And then suddenly, the noise level is incredible as everyone is talking over each other, digesting this new information about their teacher.

No one had any idea that Isak is gay.

Isak let them have it for a moment before he raises his voice, “Okay, guys. Can you calm down now? I think we’re here for some Biology…”

Reluctantly, the room falls silent again. No one spends even a second on _Biology_ right now.

Apart from the resident nerd maybe. Julian Dahl, ever eager to please, raises his hand and Isak smiles, obviously happy to go back to normal. “Excuse me, but… did your husband eat the soup you made him because we all know you’re shit in the kitchen.”

The class bursts into laughter again upon seeing Isak’s dropped jaw. “Julian, _faen_ ,” Isak splutters, “How dare you? I am a _master_ in the kitchen!”

Cocking an eyebrow, Julian teases, “Right. Because masters in the kitchen use fucking tap water for making tea…”

“Hva faen,” Isak curses again, “I should have never told you that! I was young and stupid and I told you for educational purposes. I can’t believe you’d betray me like this!”

Emma whines, knocking her head against her desk. Isak is the most amazing person and he’s _gay married_. Her life is _ruined_.

“He didn’t eat it, did he?” Julian challenges, on a roll apparently.

Isak huffs, “Yes, he did. And he liked it, thank you very much. At least _someone_ appreciates me.”

_I appreciate you_ , Emma wants to yell. _I would make you soup when you’re sick, I’d make sure you’re relaxed enough to fall asleep, we could be great together_.

“What kind of soup was it?” Eivind chimes in.

Isak groans and falls down in his chair. “The… soup-y kind with chicken and— stuff,” He replies, sounding not so sure himself.

Sara smirks, “Was it store-bought?”

“Why are you all ganging up on me?” Isak pouts and Emma’s heart hurts with how adorable he looks. Quietly, he adds, “So what if my mother-in-law helped out? Just a tiny bit?”

Everyone laughs at that.

Emilie speaks up when everyone’s calmed down again. “Is he feeling better now?”

Isak’s smile turns soft and when he nods, he’s almost bashful. “He is, thank you,” He mumbles.

Apparently, Julian is not only a nerd but also nosy as fuck — or maybe those two things go hand in hand — because he wants to know, “Did you cuddle him back to health?”

Their teacher is squinting at Julian. “Not sure if that’s an appropriate question,” He muses but then humours them, “But I might have. He likes being cuddled when he’s sick — well, he always likes being cuddled to be honest. It’s very sweet… he gets all soft and hides his face against my neck, making himself so small. He’s usually taller than I am but in those moments, he lets me take care of him. And no matter how sick he is, I can put a little smile on his face when I card my fingers through his hair. It’s the best feeling.” He presses his lips tightly together, eyes wide when he realises that he’s oversharing.

The whole class hangs on his every word and when he’s finished, there’s a collective, dreamy sigh.

It’s the perfect, epic love story.

Emma wants to cry. She was supposed to have that with Isak.

“How long have you been married?” Sara asks curiously.

There’s a deep blush on Isak’s cheeks by now but he answers anyway, “Five years but we’ve been together since I was seventeen so… _phew_ , that’s thirteen years.”

“Who proposed?”

(Isak did.)

“How did you meet?”

(Actually in the bathroom down by the auditorium here at Nissen.)

“How did you know he was _it_?”

(He made Isak accept himself and accepted him with all my flaws.)

Every second that passes that Isak talks about the man of his life, Emma feels more miserable. Isak’s smile is so bright it hurts, the flush of his cheeks so lovely and his words about his husband so full of love. He has literal hearts in his eyes.

Angrily, Emma scratches out all the hearts and merges of her and Isak’s name, feeling a little better once she’s done. She sighs in defeat.

“Finding your soulmate is not seeing fireworks and stars exploding. It’s coming home. It’s having you’re first kiss and something settles inside of you and you suddenly have no idea anymore what you were so scared of. It’s looking at your person and seeing your future together fifty years from now and feeling nothing but content. It’s taking leave of absence so you make sure they’re doing okay and eating and sleeping properly like they would do for you. It’s cherishing every second you have with the other even when you’re fighting. It’s for better, for worse, in sickness and in health — not because you made those vows but because it’s an all-encompassing need, a love to be there for him in every second of your life, forever.”

After this little speech, there’s no dry eye left and Emma accepts that she doesn’t have a chance here. Isak is in love and wholly dedicated to his husband.

Emma figures there’s always her Art teacher with his James Dean hair and eyes the colour of the ocean.

 

As luck would have it, three days later, Isak knocks at the door to the Art classroom ten minutes before the bell rings.

“Sorry,” He throws into the room haphazardly before his eyes settle back on Even. He gesticulates helplessly at the phone clutched in his hand and nothing but a choked, “Even,” leaves his lips.

Even’s eyes widen and he strides across the room. His smile is so big when he asks hopefully, “You got the call?”

Isak nods and he’s shaking.

Even wraps his arms around him and plants a kiss to Isak’s lips. Emma wants to protest that Isak has a husband and he’s very much in love and Even is supposed to like _her_ but— “We’re going to be parents!” Even announces to the classroom, happy tears shining in his eyes.

Similarly to the way the room went quiet after the big reveal of Isak having a husband, it is quiet now.

Then Emma’s classmates start clapping and Emma scratches out all the little hearts with _E+E_ in them in her notebook.

**Author's Note:**

> Writing Emma's POV was definitely a challenge, wow. Let me know what you thought in the comments and leave kudos if you liked it. You can also come chat with me over at [tumblr](julian-dahl.tumblr.com)<3


End file.
